‘Neither Alex nor Cristin get any stake in the new Apex. They have zero access to anything Apex now.’ – Alexis ‘PimpSc00by’ Gepty, Apex Co-Owner.

For months there has been speculation surrounding the true ownership of Apex Series LLC and the tournament it runs -- but today, Esports Heaven can once and for all put the issue to bed with the words the scene has wanted to hear. Fans have long worried that disgraced founder of Apex, Jonathan Lugo, known in the Smash scene as ‘Alex Strife’, was somehow still a stakeholder or possessor of a controlling interest despite the appearance of new ownership -- but this publication has seen documentation proving the outright sale of the company and all assets to Andre ‘Bifuteki’ Augustin, finalised on 1st December 2015.

The agreement, which details the sale of not just trademarks and other intellectual property but also the hardware and assets used to run and produce the event, sees Lugo and parties related to him retain no stake nor interest in the firm, and guarantees they cannot profit from future Apex events. For players and fans concerned about the possibility that he would still profit from despite not being publicly involved, this is some relief, as his name is mud in the Smash scene, and should set Apex Series up to at least have a shot at redemption with the community.

For those not aware, Lugo’s reputation came crashing down last year with a series of incidents and allegations surrounding not just the Apex tournament itself, but also some unsavoury behaviour in his personal life. A disastrous Apex 2015 was saved when streaming giants Twitch stepped in and provided a venue following the initial site being declared unsafe for use, and then allegations began to surface of a more sinister nature. Without going into details, it seemed that Lugo had been acting inappropriately toward a number of female members of the Smash community, with the first allegation triggering a wave of support and similar anecdotes from others affected by his behaviour.

As is normal in any business relationship, the new owners of Apex are not keen to condemn Lugo based on events they were not witness to, but Alexis Gepty did have this to say about the former owner. “I would say that he definitely needs some help and we hope that he gets it.  Andre could probably give you a better insight into what Johnathan is like. I made sure to distance myself from him especially when we were working on Apex together.”

Now, with the question of ownership fully cleared up, the next step is for Bifuteki and his crew to try and produce an event to bring the Apex name back into the spotlight for the right reasons, something that is far from impossible. Although Lugo ended up as a stain on the name he created, many of the people who worked tirelessly to rescue the 2015 event were part of the Apex team and would be massive assets to the company if they can be persuaded to stay on board.

In terms of commercial partners, there has been a surprising amount of support for the new team from sponsors, despite many being aware of the issues that unfolded last year. When asked if they had considered a name change to avoid the negative connotations of being 'Apex', or whether companies were happy to work with them as ‘Apex’, Gepty told us, “..some [partners], not all, but for the most part I want to say 80% of them were. Surprisingly they knew the situation and the poor management that was behind it, and put their trust in the new management.”

As for the community, it remains to be seen whether or not this is enough for them to put the ill will toward the event to bed and give it one last chance, although many responders are sure to point out that there were problems prior to Lugo’s personal downfall. “We’re trying to keep it alive for the community, although some people think we don’t really care about it and think it’s all about the money,” Gepty said. “Apex was kind of the start of Bifuteki (Augustin) making it in the FGC tournament scene, as a broadcaster, so we’ve always had a soft spot for it.”

With the 2016 iteration due to happen very close to CEO, which is a growing part of the Smash calendar, it might be hard for the staff to run such a huge event as is normal. However, if Apex can put together a safe, happy and enjoyable weekend for those that attend in 2016 we could yet see the full rehabilitation of one of the biggest names in Smash history, and a well-run Apex would be a massive bonus for Smashers everywhere.

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Image courtesy of NJ.com